Automatic flood gate



Se t. 23, 1930. c RAMUNNO 1,776,371

' AUTOMATIC FLOOD GATE Filed Nov. 8, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l gwuantoz 5; 6: Hamunno Se t. 23; 1930,

C3. RAMUNNQ AUTOMATI C FLOOD GATE Filed Nov. 1928 2 Sheets-sheet 2 [I Q 'HlI Hl I l 1 l G 1mm: 1 I I gmntqz a Bamunno ture'shownin Figure l;

.throughthegate showingthe guides there- Patented Sept. 23, 1930 Y PATENT OFFICE .1

, i CHARLIE RAMUNNO, or EL Mono; COLORADO:

[ aurolvraric rL-oon GATE l ipplicationfil ed No ember 8,1923. seria N9. 318,029.

' This invention, relates to gates :tor automatically controlling "the discharge of water from behind adam, wall or other abutment and particularly to that class of gates where-' 5 in a flood gate is automatically opened when the water rises beyond'a predetermined point.

The general object of this invention is to provide a very simple, easily operated, automatic gate controlling mechanism of this character and more specifically to provide a gate'controlling the discharge of water from behind the dam, which gate is lifted by the descent of a water tankor bucket which is V normally raised and empty but which is filled and caused to descend when water passes overthe spillway of the dam.

V A further object is to provide means whereby the tank will be opened for the discharge of water when it has descended and 1 whereby the tank will remain in its lowered position. and hold thegate open until the water has sunk below the level of the spill- -way. i

7 My invention is illustrated invtheaccompanying :lrawings,-wherein:'

, Figure 1 is a top plan view of the dam or like structure having my automatic gate applied thereto; u I I Figure 2 is a rear elevation of the struc Figure3'i s an enlarged cross section on the I a line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 1 is a section on theline 44 of Figure 2; I v m Figure 5 1s a fragmentary cross section for. Y v v i w 7. Referring to these drawings, 10 designates a dam or water wall of'any suitable character 4 havingv the spillway 11 Thedam 10 beyond the spillway is formed with the outlet 12 i which is adjacent the bottom of the structure 13 ewh erein the flood gate is disposed. f Mounted bet-ween the, walls 14 of the struc 3 5 ture 13is a standard'radialgate 15 of the breast wall type which is pivoted as at 16 and adapted to'beraised by means of a cable 17 extending over a winding drum 18 mount- 1 ed upon a shaft 19. r The shaft'19 is mounted in three bearings 20' carried upon the walls way 11 and over a discharge pit 21. Mount- -ed over this discharge pit-21 and uponthe shaft'19 are the two pulleys or'winding drums 22 'over which cables 23 extend, these cables being connected to a water tank 24. This water tank m'ovesivertically in guides '25 if necessary, these guides being angular. There may be guides at'allfour corners of the tank if desired though ordinarily guides at two corners of the tank are sufiicient; -This tank may have any desired length and is provided upon one face with a disch arge'opening 26 controlled by a vertically movable gate 27 operating in slides. v g This gateis connected by a link28 to'a 14-. This shaft eite dsparallel a; the spill beam '29 "extending between the walls l l-so a that when the. tank 24 lowers the gate 27 will beheld from downward movement and will thus open and when the tank 24 rises the gate will close. '1

The operation of this mechanism is as follows:-- v I" 7 5 Under "normal circumstances thcgate'15 is closed and the'tank 24 is raised'but if the water should rise above the floor of the spillway 11, the watcr'will commence to rush over the spillway and into the tank 24. When the tankis filledrit will overweight the gate 15 and the tankwill descend lifting the gate. As the tank/descends the gate 27 of the tank will be raised so asto discharge. the-water when the tank islowered and the tank will remain inthis lowered position? by the weight of water passin over the 'spillway and de- 7 sccnding into the tank and then out alongthe wasteuny; hen the water has lowered below the floor of the spillwaythere will be no water in the tank 24 and, of course, the tank willthen rise and the gate 15 wi1l close, the gate 15 counterbalancing the empty tank 24.

' For the purposeot operating the gate by hand, I mount upon the'shaft19, the gear wall having a gateway adj acent thelower ,end' 1 comprising a its upper end and disposed on the fromthe spillway and descends, the gate shall becpened', and a gate for the tank held from relative downward movement with the tank I and gradually opening asthe tank descends todis'charge the "contents of the tankin proportion tothe descentthereof, the water passa. flexible connection passing over said tank to the drum, the descent of the tank causing rotation of the shaft to lift the gate and the descent of the gate causing the rotation of the shaft to lift the tank, and a gate forming one Wall of the tank when the tank is raised, said gate being supported from downwardsmovementwith the tank whereby asthe tank is lmivered the discharge gate thereof will be opened in proportion to the descent of the tank, the water from the spill-way being dis- V charged onto the tank and holding it in its lowered'position so long as water passes from the spill-way.

In testimony whereof I hereunto .aflix signature. h I a I 4 CHARLIE" RAMU NQ ing over the spill-way as the gateis lowered holding the tank in a lowered position. 2.- An automatic flood gate comprising a wall having a. gateway ad acent the lower 3 end-of the wall and a spillway adjacent the a: 'top 'of the wall but offsetwith relation to the gateway, a tank open at its upper 'end an'd' disposed on the outer facei'ofthe} wall coincident with the, spillway and receiving water passing over the floor of the spillwa said tank when filled to a predetermined point 'counterbalancingthe gate,' a-shaft having flexible connections wound thereon andoperatively;connected to the gate, flexible connecl'ions wound upo'n the shaftand opera tively connected to the tank,the tank being raised as-rthegate is loweredandthe gate raised as the tankis lowered wherebyas the tank fills with water from therspillwayand descends, the gate shall be opened, and means for discharging the tankas the tank descends, said means comprising a gate constituting one side wall of the tank and fitting fully within the tank when the tank is rais ed, and means holding the gate fromfdownwardmovement 'with the tank whereby as-the' tank? descends 7 the gate jwill gradually open inproportion to the descent of the tank, the water passing over the i spill-way beingdischa'rged on tothe tank whenlowered andhol'ding it in lowered position.

An automatic flood gate comprising a wall having a gateway adjacent thelower end I of thewall'and a spillway adjacent the top of the wall,'the spillwayand gatewaybeing.lat-' erally ioffset'; with relation to each other, a

gate controlling the passage through the gate- Y way, a. pivotal axis for the gate extending" paralleltoithe saidwall bLlt'SPZICQClthflEGfYOIH, a shaft extendingrparallel to" thewall and above tliegateand carrying'winding'drums, C0I1IlBCt1QI1Sp2LSS1Hg over said winding drums. V and engaging the gate, a wind1ng-drum mountedjuponthe,shaft above the spil-llway.

r atank open at its upper end andat one side, 

